HODGEPODGE NOV 28

 1. Talking turkey...are you cooking the turkey this year? Does ham belong on a Thanksgiving day menu? When it comes to gravy do you pour it over your whole plate, skip it altogether, or land somewhere in between? Cranberries-homemade or jelled right out of the can? Do you look forward more to the main course, the savory sides, or the desserts?

It's ages that we didn't have Turkey on Christmas, my father, and my husband didn't like turkey and my mother was afraid of cooking it. So our traditional Christmas meal was tongue in Madeira sauce and rice.

 Tongue in Sauce Madeira

 

Later, when the daughter-in-law was added, we choose as Christmas meal, a pierrade. 

That was very easy,  you could fry meat on the top and melt cheese underneath. There were also thick potatoes for the cheese and small ones for the meat (or bread) and of course vegetables and salad.The reason was, my DIL is a vegetarian and so we had both, cheese and meat.

 

 

The Pierrade is very practical ! Everybody cooks what he wants and that is funny too !

I know there are at least a couple of bloggers who participate here who live outside the US and won't be celebrating Thanksgiving. If that's you feel free to adapt this question to your December (or any) holiday meal. 

 

As my ancestors missed the Mayflower, we have no Thanksgiving of course, the turkeys are happy they can live a little more ... until Christmas. 

2. Holiday movies...tell us your favorite and what it is about the film that makes you love it. Is it the film itself or a memory it stirs? 

I don't like Holiday movies, they start so early and at the end of December you have an overdose. The only movie I love and watch each year is a French movie called "Father Christmas is a rat" and each year I laugh as much as the year before !

3. A favorite way to give back and help others? 

I gave everything I didn't need in my "castle", furniture, devices, clothes etc to charity. And here I am helping the disabled pushing wheelchairs or lead lost people into their rooms. In short I do what I am able to do. I also became the delegate between the residents and the management, as there are a lot who don't dare to complain about something. I don't care, when it's justified I complain !

4. Name a place or setting you encountered this month that made you feel grateful. 

None, it rains everyday, the sky is grey and it's humid and I have difficulties to breath due to my chronic lung problems (CPOD). Next month it will be better I hope.

5. Knowing what you know today, if you could redo yesterday what would you do differently? 

Only one thing comes into my mind ! Looking back I had a very happy marriage, a healthy boy a good job, But what I should have done is forbid my parents from interfering in our marriage and raising our son like they did. We always had fights. They always attacked me, but didn't dare to say anything to my husband or son. I was always the bad one! And that was mostly on Christmas !

But then we had nice Christmases, here is a picture from 2012 with little 2 year old Toby who today is 14 and 1.96 m tall !

 

Eating the Pierrade

6. Spill your own random thought here. 

Since Rick is gone for me Christmas is a very sad time. I don't want to celebrate, but think of my family, so I really don't know with whom, when and if I celebrate Christmas. My son too is in a difficult situation, his wife's parents are divorced, so there is Christmas with the MIL, Christmas with the FIL and Christmas with Mum ! Poor boy !

Rosie celebrates her Christmas as usual, since 17 years,  she doesn't like Turkey either and also not the tongue !